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Bunny thought it was very smart for a person to walk on a rope 

AND NOT FALL. 





































































































































































/ 


THE ADVENTURES 
OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


BY 

RUTH IRMA LOW 

it 


WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY 

LES STOUT, 



BOSTON 

LOTHROP, LEE AND SHEPARD COMPANY 

1935 

















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Vjs^HVo 


Copyright, 1935, 

By RUTH IRMA LOW 

All rights reserved including the rights to reproduce 
this book or parts thereof in any form. 


PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 



©oi A 


78539 


TO MY NEPHEWS, 

AND TEDDY 


FRANCIS 



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• • 





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*N W 


















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CONTENTS 


How Bunny Bob-tail Was Named 

• 




PAGE 

1 

Bunny Bob-tail Finds Something 





4 

Two Rabbits and a Pie .... 





10 

How a Little Bunny Took a Bath . 





13 

Bunny Bob-tail Has a Quarrel . 





15 

Mr. Fox Goes Calling .... 





21 

Mrs. Rabbit Loses Something 





24 

Bunny Takes a Tumble 





26 

Bunny Bob-tail Tells a Lie 





28 

Aunt Sarah Rabbit Comes to Bunnyville 




34 

The Story of a Foolish Bunny . 





37 

Bunny Hears About Baby Buttercup 





40 

Grandma Rabbit Gives a Party . 





44 

Bunny Bob-tail Hears a New Story 





47 

Aunt Sarah Tells Another Story . 





52 

A Story About a Lion .... 





55 

Mrs. Black Rabbit’s Sunflower 





57 

Bunny Bob-tail Plays a Trick . 





60 

The Bunnies Play Seesaw 





67 

Some Queer Little Lights . 





70 

The Pinky Rabbits Call on Bunny Bob-tail 



73 

Bunny Bob-tail Goes Visiting 


• 



77 

What Happened to a Dish of Candy 


• 


• 

84 


• • 
Vll 







CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Bunny Bob-tail at the Pond.86 

Why Bunny Bob-tail Didn’t Get Some Toys . . 92 

The Bunnies Play “J ack and the Beanstalk” . 97 

Bunny Bob-tail and the Bee. 101 

Bunny Bob-tail Gets a Scare. 103 

c 

How Bunny Did an Errand. 109 

The Bunnies Play Indian. 112 

Bunny Bob-tail Does Some Painting . . . .115 

Bunny Bob-tail Runs Away. 118 

A Visit to Grandma’s. 124 

The Story of a Sand Pile. 127 

Bunny Bob-tail Disobeys. 131 


Vlll 








THE ADVENTURES 
OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 











. 





THE ADVENTURES 
OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


HOW BUNNY BOB-TAIL WAS NAMED 

When he was a very tiny rabbit, his grandmother 
said, “This bunny has an unusually short tail. In 
fact, I think it is a bob-tail. ,, 

The baby bunny’s father, who had been thinking 
hard to find a suitable name for his son, exclaimed, 
“Now that is a splendid name for our new baby rab¬ 
bit 1 Bunny Bob-tail! It just suits him!” So Bunny 
Bob-tail he was called. 

Mrs. Rabbit thought there never was such a clever 
little bunny in all Bunnyville, and as for his 
grandma, who lived on the other side of the hill, she 
never could pet him enough. 

Bunny Bob-tail grew every day. His very best 

1 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

friend was Johnny Rabbit, who lived next door. 
What happy times the two bunnies had together! 
Sometimes they were naughty, as we shall see, but 
almost always they tried to be good, obedient rabbits. 

As Mother Rabbit said to Mrs. Black Rabbit, 
Johnny’s mamma, “I feel that I can trust our two 
bunnies together, but there are some rabbits who live 
in the white house far up the road and I have for¬ 
bidden Bunny Bob-tail to play with them, as they 

• ■ 

are naughty rabbits.” 

“And I never allow the Pinky rabbits in my 
yard,” replied Mrs. Black Rabbit. “Do you know 
that last summer when I took Johnny to visit his 
cousins in the village next to Bunnyville, the Pinky 
rabbits came into my garden and stole most of my 
lettuce and carrots? Only for the postman, we should 
have had nothing left. 

“Just as he arrived those bad rabbits scampered 
out through the gate. I wonder they didn’t die from 
eating so much.” 


2 


HOW BUNNY BOB-TAIL WAS NAMED 


But I’m glad to say there were many good rabbits 
in Bunnyville, of whom we shall hear more in these 
stories. 


* 


3 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL FINDS SOMETHING 


“Let’s go out in the woods and play to-day,” said 
Bunny Bob-tail to his friend Johnny Rabbit one 
afternoon in summer. 

“I’ll be glad to,” said Johnny Rabbit. “Do you 
suppose we’ll find any strawberries?” 

“Maybe,” answered Bunny Bob-tail. 

So after lunch they started for the woods. They 
found some pretty flowers and some strawberries. 

“I love strawberries,” said Johnny Rabbit. 

“Don’t talk when you have something in your 
mouth,” said Bunny Bob-tail. “It’s very bad man¬ 
ners.” 

“I know it,” said the other bunny, “but I forgot 
just that once.” 

Then the two little friends wandered on through 
the woods. 

Suddenly Johnny Rabbit stood still. “Listen!” he 
whispered. 


4 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL FINDS SOMETHING 

Both rabbits listened. “Tap-tap-tippy-tap1” was 
what they heard. 

“Oh, Bunny Bob-tail, I’m so scared!” said Johnny 
Rabbit. “Will you come home with me?” 

“Nonsense,” said the other. “That’s only a wood¬ 
pecker, and he won’t harm you.” 

“Oh, I’m not afraid of birds,” said Johnny Rabbit. 
“Only I didn’t know who could be making that funny 
noise.” 

“Just ask me if you want to know anything about 
birds,” said Bunny Bob-tail, proudly. “I can tell 
you about the meadow lark and the blue jay and the 
oriole and many others.” 

Just then they came to an open place in the woods. 
In front of them was a hill. They climbed it, and on 
the top was a queer-looking object. It was small 
and had three wheels. 

“What do you suppose that is?” asked Bunny 
Bob-tail, who saw the object first. 

“I’m sure I don’t know,” replied Johnny Rabbit. 

5 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“Now I don’t know the name of it, but I am very 
sure I have seen boys riding on one near my house,” 
said Bunny. 

Then he looked at the wheels and decided to have 
a ride. “You hold it while I jump on,” said Bunny 
Bob-tail. 

Johnny Rabbit held it. But suddenly the wheels 
began to move, and before Bunny Bob-tail could 
jump he was riding down the hill! 

“Oh!” shrieked Johnny Rabbit. “You will get 
hurt, Bunny Bob-tail. Hold on very tight!” 

Bunny Bob-tail did hold on, but rabbits are not 
naturally good tricycle riders, and so he went down 
the hill a little too fast. 

He was very much frightened, and when he finally 
reached the bottom of the hill, all would have gone 
well if Bunny could have steered into the tall grass. 
But since he could not steer, the tricycle and Bunny 
Bob-tail went right into a barberry bush, and it was 
not a nice, soft place to land, you may be sure. 

6 



Before Bunny Bob-tail could jump he was riding down the hill! 












































BUNNY BOB-TAIL FINDS SOMETHING 

He picked himself up and found many scratches 
and bruises which had not been there when he left 
home. 

Johnny Rabbit helped him to walk, and after a 
long time Bunny Bob-tail limped into his yard. 

“Oh, Bunny Bob-tail!” said his mother, when she 
heard what had happened. “If only you would learn 
to keep away from things which don’t belong to you! 
But I do hope you have had your first and last 
tricycle ride.” 


9 


TWO RABBITS AND A PIE 


Mrs. Black Rabbit and Bunny Bob-tail’s mother 
had gone to the city to shop, and they had warned 
the bunnies to be very good while they were away. 

“You will find some raisin cookies in the cooky 
box,” Mrs. Rabbit had said, “but don’t eat too many 
or you’ll get sick.” 

Bunny Bob-tail and Johnny Rabbit played school 
and took turns at being teacher. They had great fun. 
Once when Johnny Rabbit was the pupil he ran 
away, and what a merry chase he led his teacher all 
over the garden and yard! 

“Don’t you think it’s time to have some cookies?” 
asked Bunny. “Let’s go and get some and then we’ll 
play again.” 

The two bunnies helped themselves to raisin cook¬ 
ies. They were all ready to go out of the pantry when 

10 


TWO RABBITS AND A PIE 

Bunny Bob-tail saw something on one of the upper 
shelves. It was a nice pie all covered with sticky 
white frosting. 

“See what we’re going to have for supper, 
Johnny,” cried Bunny. “It’s a cream pie!” 

Johnny Rabbit said he had never tasted cream pie, 
but that he liked the looks of that one. 

“Dear me!” exclaimed Bunny Bob-tail, who 
couldn’t imagine what it could be like not to have 
tasted anything so delicious. “I’ll give you a teeny, 
weeny taste of this one,” said Bunny Bob-tail. Then 
he cut a teeny, weeny piece of cream pie. 

“It’s just the nicest thing I ever tasted,” said 
Johnny Rabbit. 

Bunny Bob-tail cut off another piece and handed 
it to Johnny. After that he helped himself to some. 

All this time Bunny Bob-tail was standing on a 
chair. He had taken the cream pie down to cut it 
more easily. Just as he was putting back what was 
left, the plate slipped and crashed to the floor. 

11 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

“Oh, Johnny Rabbit, look at that pie! What will 
Mother say?” he cried. 

Just then Mother Rabbit came in and saw two 
tearful little bunnies viewing half a cream pie and a 
broken plate on the pantry floor. 

She told Bunny Bob-tail what a naughty rabbit 
he had been to take what was not his. Then she sent 
him to bed, to think over what he had done. You 
may be sure he did not climb the pantry shelf for 
cream pie again. 


12 


HOW A LITTLE BUNNY TOOK A BATH 


“Please, Mrs. Black Rabbit, may Johnny go for 
a walk with me?” asked Bunny Bob-tail from over 
the fence one morning. 

“Yes, he may go with you,” replied Mrs. Black 
Rabbit from the pantry where she was making blue¬ 
berry pies for dinner. 

The two little friends went through the fields, 
sometimes stopping to gather flowers or berries. Soon 
they came to a road they had never seen before. 

“I think some little boys live there,” said Johnny, 
“because I see a cart and a rocking-horse in the yard. 
Let’s go in and look around.” 

In they went and they saw many toys out under 
the trees, but no little boys were in sight. 

“There is a tub full of water,” cried Johnny, sud¬ 
denly, and the two bunnies went nearer. They saw a 
pretty little boat sailing about in the tub of water. 

“It doesn’t go fast enough,” said Bunny Bob-tail, 

13 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

and he jumped up and pushed the boat so as to make 
it sail better. 

But into the tub that bunny fell, splash! splash! 
splash! He was very much scared. Johnny Rabbit 
screamed, and two little boys came running out of a 
barn near by. 

“What a cute bunny!” one boy exclaimed. Then 
he saw Bunny Bob-tail floundering around in the 
water. He quickly took him out and told him to sit 
on the grass and let the sun dry his wet clothes. 

Then the boys talked kindly to the rabbits and 
the older one said it was always best for bunnies not 
to meddle with things which did not belong to them. 

“My mother has told me that many times,” con¬ 
fessed Bunny Bob-tail, quite ashamed. 

“The best bunnies in the whole world are those 
who always obey their mothers,” the boy also said. 

By and by the boys found out where Bunny Bob- 
tail and Johnny Rabbit lived and rode them all the 
way home in their cart. 


14 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL HAS A QUARREL 

Johnny Rabbit and his friend Bunny Bob-tail 
were playing in a field one day, when they found a 
ball. 

They happened to see it exactly at the same time. 
It was a very pretty ball. It had red, white and blue 
stripes. Johnny Rabbit and Bunny Bob-tail were de¬ 
lighted with it. They played for a long time. 

Finally Bunny Bob-tail said, “It is time to go 
home. I am very hungry and I am sure it is time 
for supper.” 

So the two rabbits started to go home. 

On the way Bunny Bob-tail said, “Johnny, give 
me the ball. It might not be safe in your tent, so I’ll 
keep it up on the shelf in my kitchen.” 

“Perhaps it would roll off the shelf,” said Johnny 
Rabbit. “I really think that my tent is the place for 
it.” 


15 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


Then they quarreled. 

“You can’t have that ball,” said Johnny Rabbit, 
growing angrier every minute. 

“I’m going to get the ball,” cried Bunny Bob-tail, 
just as angry now as the other. 

Then the two friends said many naughty things to 
each other, and called each other names. By and by 
the quarrel grew very much more serious, and I am 
sorry to say that Bunny Bob-tail and Johnny Rabbit 
lost their tempers, just as people sometimes do when 
they quarrel. And of course that, as you know, is a 
very bad thing to let happen. 

Those two rabbits were soon really fighting. Bunny 
Bob-tail hit Johnny Rabbit right in the face. Johnny 
hit him back. Then such a contest as followed! In 
the middle of it Bunny Bob-tail’s father came 
along. 

He could not believe his eyes. There was his own 
son fighting. “What is this all about?” he asked 
when he had separated the two bunnies. 

,16 



In the middle of it Bunny Bob-tail’s father came along. 













































































































BUNNY BOB-TAIL HAS A QUARREL 

“Johnny stole the ball, and so I told him to give 
it back,” said Bunny Bob-tail, very much ashamed. 

“Whose ball is it?” asked Bunny’s father. 

“It’s mine,” said the rabbits together. 

“Now that can’t be,” said Mr. Rabbit. “Where 
did you get the ball?” 

Then Johnny Rabbit told about finding it and 
having such fun playing. “But I guess we found it 
just at the same time. Bunny wanted to keep it and I 
wanted to keep it,” Johnny said. 

“Well, well,” exclaimed Mr. Rabbit. “I thought 
that two bunnies who were such good friends knew 
better than to quarrel over a ball. Couldn’t you 
compromise?” he asked. 

“We don’t know what ‘compromise’ is,” said 
Bunny Bob-tail. 

“It means to settle things without quarreling,” 
answered Mr. Rabbit. “Now Johnny Rabbit could 
keep the ball for a week, and then Bunny Bob-tail 
could keep it for the next week, and so on.” 

19 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“I guess we’ll always try to compromise here¬ 
after,” said Bunny Bob-tail and Johnny Rabbit at the 
same time. 

And they said good-by and ran home, just as good 
friends as ever. 


20 


MR. FOX GOES CALLING 


Mrs. Rabbit had gone calling one fine day and 
Bunny Bob-tail said it would be a splendid time for 
him and Johnny Rabbit to have a good game of hop¬ 
scotch. 

The two bunnies never could play hopscotch with¬ 
out making a great deal of noise, and Bunny’s 
mother said she could not hear herself think when 
the rabbits acted that way. 

They were having a grand time, and Bunny Bob- 
tail was winning most of the games, when they heard 
a pleasant voice at the gate. 

“Bunny Bob-tail, do let me in, and I’ll show you 
a brand-new way to play hopscotch,” was what the 
stranger said. 

Johnny Rabbit whispered, “It’s Mr. Fox, and I’m 
afraid, aren’t you?” 


21 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

But Bunny was not scared, so he said, “No, indeed, 
and I’m simply crazy to learn a new way to play hop¬ 
scotch.” Down to the gate he went and unfastened it 
so that the visitor could enter. 

“What a fine garden you have!” began Mr. Fox in 
his flattering way. 

“We have lots of fun here,” replied Bunny Bob- 
tail. “But please show us the brand-new way to play 
hopscotch.” 

“Well, you stand in the first square,” said the fox, 
“and instead of hopping into the second, you turn a 
somersault in the air and try to come down in the sec¬ 
ond square, like this.” And he showed them the way. 

Both bunnies were delighted. That was an ex¬ 
tremely difficult thing to do, and try as they would 
neither one could do it. Of course they thought the 
fox was wonderful. 

“But I have stayed longer than I expected,” said 
Mr. Fox, “and I must be on my way now. Why don’t 
you bunnies come over to my home in the woods for 

22 


MR. FOX GOES CALLING 

a time? I can show you many more good tricks.” 

“We’d love to!” exclaimed the two rabbits, and so 
all three started down the road on the way to the 
fox’s home. 

Before long they saw Bunny Bob-tail’s father com¬ 
ing toward them. Sly Mr. Fox saw him, too, and ran 
pell-mell across the meadow. 

“Oh, you foolish little rabbits, to be led away by a 
fox!” said Bunny’s father. And he told them that 
Mr. Fox meant to play a mean trick on them, and also 
that bunnies made a very good dinner for a fox. 

Bunny Bob-tail learned a lesson, and so did 
Johnny Rabbit, but they kept on trying to play hop¬ 
scotch by turning a somersault in the air. 


23 


/ 


MRS. RABBIT LOSES SOMETHING 

“Bunny Bob-tail,” called out Mrs. Rabbit one 
morning from the garden, “run into the house and 
find my scissors. They are in the work basket in my 
room.” 

Bunny Bob-tail scampered in. He was gone an un¬ 
usually long time. 

“I can’t find them, Mother,” he said, when he 
finally came out, “and I have really hunted in your 
work basket and everywhere.” 

Mrs. Rabbit could not understand it. “I had them 
yesterday, I am positive,” she said. “Now think 
hard, Bunny Bob-tail. Did you take my scissors to 
cut the flowers with last night just after supper?” 

“Yes, Mother, but I’m sure I put them back where 
I found them,” Bunny replied. 

“Let us look over in the garden,” said Mrs. Rabbit. 

24 


MRS. RABBIT LOSES SOMETHING 

“Sometimes, you know, little bunnies are very for¬ 
getful, although they don’t mean to be.” 

Then Bunny Bob-tail and his mother searched 
through every nook and corner of the garden. 

“Oh, Mother,” cried Bunny, “here are your scis¬ 
sors right under the yellow rosebush. But they are 
very funny-looking and are all rusty-like.” 

“Of course they are rusty,” said Mother Rabbit. 
“They were left out all night, and you remember it 
rained hard during most of the night. You see, my 
son,” continued Mrs. Rabbit, “careless people make 
lots of work for others. If you had put the scissors 
back last night, instead of leaving them outdoors, 
they would be as good as new to-day.” 

Bunny Bob-tail said he was sorry and made up 
his mind to be more careful in the future. Then he 
ran over to play jackstones with Johnny Rabbit, who 

i 

was waiting for him with two delicious lollipops 
which Mr. Black Rabbit had brought home from 
town. 

25 


BUNNY TAKES A TUMBLE 


In the next town to Bunnyville there was to be a 
circus, and on many fences and barns large pictures 
were shown of wonderful things which could be seen 
there. 

There was a woman standing up on horseback, a 
man going up in a balloon, and another man walking 
a tight rope high up in the air. 

All the boys and girls stopped to look at the pic¬ 
tures, and of course they planned to go to the circus. 

Bunny Bob-tail and Johnny Rabbit admired the 
clever things done by the circus men and women. 
Bunny thought it was very smart for a person to walk 
on a rope and not fall. 

“Johnny Rabbit, I think I could walk across the 
fence in the meadow,” said Bunny. 

“Oh, dear me, you’d fall and scratch your pink 
nose,” exclaimed his friend. 

“You just watch me,” returned courageous Bunny 

26 


BUNNY TAKES A TUMBLE 

Bob-tail, as the two rabbits scampered through the 
meadow. 

Now it is hard enough to walk on the top of any 
fence, but the one in the meadow was very narrow. 
Johnny helped Bunny Bob-tail to climb up. 

At first Bunny walked very slowly. It was great 
fun! Johnny Rabbit stood near by cheering his play¬ 
mate. “Don’t go too fast,” he warned, when Bunny 
Bob-tail quickened his pace. 

But Bunny Bob-tail did go too fast, and over the 
fence he fell on a big rock. Johnny hastened to the 
place where he had fallen. 

“Oh, my nose!” cried Bunny Bob-tail. 

“There’s a long scratch on it,” said Johnny Rabbit. 

Then the two bunnies went home, and Mrs. Rab¬ 
bit poured something out of a bottle and put it on 
the scratched pink nose. All the rest of the week 
Bunny Bob-tail wore a piece of court-plaster over the 
scratch, and you may be sure that he did not play 
circus for a long, long time. 

27 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL TELLS A LIE 


Bunny Bob-tail was taking his turn at keeping the 
ball which he and Johnny Rabbit had found. Each 
one kept it a week at a time. Bunny Bob-tail had 
kept it three days when Johnny Rabbit came over 
one morning. 

“Oh, Bunny Bob-tail!” cried Johnny. “I wonder 
if you’ll let me take the ball over in my yard to-day. 
You see my father and mother have gone away for 
the day and I’ll have to stay at home and play all 
alone. The next week you may keep it two extra 
days.” 

“Can’t you come over here and play with me?” 
inquired Bunny Bob-tail. 

“No, I wish I could,” said Johnny Rabbit. “But 
mother said to stay in the yard. She said I might run 
over and ask you for the ball but to come right back.” 

“That’s too bad,” said Bunny. Then he did a very 

28 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL TELLS A LIE 

naughty thing. He told a lie. a I’ve lost the ball,” he 
said. 

“Oh, what a shame!” exclaimed Johnny Rabbit. 
“But when did you lose it and how did it happen?” 

“Well, you see, last night, right after supper, my 
father and I were out in the yard, playing with the 
ball. My father said to me, ‘Bunny Bob-tail, you are 
a wonderful ball player. In fact, I think if you 
should try, you could easily hit the roof of that big 
house over there.’ 

“Then I threw the ball up high, with all my might, 
to see if I really could touch the roof. And I did! 
But what do you think, Johnny Rabbit? That ball 
didn’t come back! And although I got up early and 
hunted all through the field, I didn’t find the ball.” 

“I’m very sorry,” said Johnny Rabbit, “but I’m 
sure the ball is over in the field somewhere. Now you 
just wait and I’ll get over the fence and find it before 
very long.” 

Of course Bunny Bob-tail was telling a wrong 

29 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

story, for the ball was in the corner of the box where 
he kept it. 

But Johnny Rabbit climbed the fence and was 
going to jump down on the other side in the nice, 
soft grass—when he fell! 

He cried very hard. 

“What’s the matter, Johnny Rabbit, and what are 
you crying for?” asked Bunny Bob-tail, very much 
frightened. 

“Oh, I’ve scratched my face on a big rock,” said 
the other. 

Just then Bunny Bob-tail’s mother ran out and 
picked Johnny up and carried him into the house. 
Then she bathed his face and put a bandage over the 
scratch. 

“Oh, Johnny Rabbit,” cried Bunny, very sorry 
now, “I told a wrong story. The ball is in my box 
now. I never threw it up and hit the roof. And if 
I hadn’t told you that, you never would have jumped 
up on the fence and fallen off and cut your face.” 

30 



Then she bathed his face and put a bandage over the scratch. 























































BUNNY BOB-TAIL TELLS A LIE 


“I’m very much ashamed of you for telling a 
wrong story,” said Bunny Bob-tail’s mother. “I hope 
you will never tell another.” 

“I never will, Mother,” promised Bunny Bob-tail. 
“And Johnny Rabbit, you may have the ball for the 
rest of the summer.” 


33 


AUNT SARAH RABBIT COMES TO 

BUNNYVILLE 


“Come and put on your best white suit, Bunny 
dear,” said Mrs. Rabbit early one morning, “because 
we are going to the station to meet Aunt Sarah, who 
will spend a few days with us here in Bunnyville.” 

“Oh, I am so glad,” exclaimed the little rabbit, 
“for my Aunt Sarah can tell stories better than any 
one in the world!” 

“Better than Grandma?” asked his mother. 

“Oh, I think so,” replied Bunny, “because Grand¬ 
ma’s stories aren’t very long, but Aunt Sarah tells me 
stories that last ever so long.” 

Mother Rabbit dressed her son in his very best 
white suit, and soon they were on their way to the 
Bunnyville station. 

It was not very long before the train drew in, and 

34 


AUNT SARAH COMES TO BUNNYVILLE 

there with her bag and baggage was Aunt Sarah. 
She kissed Bunny Bob-tail and his mother, and then 
said, “Oh, my dear little Bunny, you can never guess 
what I have brought you!” 

Bunny Bob-tail guessed everything from a box of 
candy to a parrot, but he was wrong every single 
time. So at last Aunt Sarah had to tell him. 

She had brought him a jump-rope! Not a plain 
piece of jump-rope such as some of the boys and girls 
in Bunnyville played with, but a smooth piece of rope 
with splendid, shiny handles. 

Bunny Bob-tail was delighted, and could hardly 
wait until he was home and could open the precious 
bundle. 

Right away he ran out and called his friend Johnny 
over to see his new plaything. But Bunny Bob-tail 
was not used to jumping rope, and at the very first 
jump he tripped and over he went right into the mid¬ 
dle of a puddle. 

Of course his best white suit got covered with mud, 

35 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


and it was indeed a sorry sight. But after he had put 
on some overalls, he went out once more, and he and 
Johnny jumped rope to their hearts’ content. 


36 


THE STORY OF A FOOLISH BUNNY 


“Please tell me a long, long story, Auntie,” coaxed 
Bunny Bob-tail the very first night of his aunt’s visit. 

“Now I wonder what kind of a story you’d like to 
hear,” his aunt replied. 

“I think I should like to hear about a bunny,” said 
the little rabbit. 

So Aunt Sarah began the story, and here it is: 

“One day a rabbit said to himself, ‘I am tired of 
living in this lonesome spot. I do not like the com¬ 
pany of rabbits, anyway, so I will hunt for a home 
where there won’t be a bunny in sight. I am far too 
good to associate with rabbits.’ 

“Then that rabbit went through the woods until 
he came to a queer-looking house. He walked in, as 
the door was open, and soon settled himself in a com¬ 
fortable-looking chair. 


37 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“ ‘Now this will make a most delightful home, and 
I’m sure no rabbits will disturb me here,’ he told 
himself. 

“Then the bunny dozed of! to sleep and dreamed 
that he was a king. When he awoke, he heard some¬ 
one rapping at the door, which the bunny had locked. 

“ ‘Who is there?’ demanded the rabbit. 

“ ‘It is I, Mr. Fox, and I should like to know who 
you are to be in my house, while I am locked out,’ 
was the answer. 

“ ‘Dear me,’ replied the rabbit, who was not yet 
fully awake, ‘I am a king, and this is my castle. But 
I shall be pleased to have you for a visitor.’ 

“ ‘Then unlock the door, dear King,’ the sly fox 
said, ‘and let us have a feast, as I have brought plenty 
of food with me.’ 

“So the rabbit opened the door, and he and the 
fox had a grand feast. But all the time the fox was 
planning to make the rabbit fall asleep so that he 
could make a meal of him. 

38 


THE STORY OF A FOOLISH BUNNY 

“By and by he said, ‘King Rabbit, do you hear the 
horses galloping through the forest?’ 

“And the rabbit replied, ‘I hear nothing but the 
rustling of the leaves overhead.’ 

“ ‘Ah, then, you should shut your eyes tight, as 
I am doing, and then you will hear much better,’ said 
Mr. Fox. 

“The foolish rabbit did shut his eyes, and before 
he knew where he was, the fox had pounced upon him 
and eaten him up for the rest of his supper. And 
that was the end of the foolish bunny.” 

“He was a proud rabbit because he thought him¬ 
self better than his friends,” said Bunny Bob-tail, and 
he thanked his aunt for telling him the story. 

Then he fell asleep thinking of the fun he and 
Johnny Rabbit would have the next day. 


39 


BUNNY HEARS ABOUT BABY 
BUTTERCUP 


“What shall it be to-night, Bunny Bob-tail, a story 
about a fox or a bear?” asked Aunt Sarah Rabbit 
one night just before the bunny’s bedtime. 

“I’d like to hear a story about some flowers,” re¬ 
plied Bunny Bob-tail. 

So his aunt told him a story called “Baby Butter¬ 
cup.” 

“Out on the very edge of a field where the grass 
was greenest, there grew some lovely buttercups, as 
yellow as yellow could be. Apart from the larger 
flowers grew one little buttercup which seemed 
paler and less beautiful than her sister flowers. 

“Now the larger buttercups were very proud of 
themselves, and stood up straight and tall. But they 
weren’t very kind to the Baby Buttercup. ‘You will 
never grow to be beautiful, and look as we do,’ they 
said. ‘Nobody ever notices you, you pale little blos¬ 
som.’ 


40 


BUNNY HEARS ABOUT BABY BUTTERCUP 


“One day some children walking through the field 
stopped to admire the buttercups. What beautiful 
flowers! They are the color of gold/ said the tallest 
girl. 

“ ‘Here is a pale little blossom/ said another. ‘She 
does not seem to grow. She is so tiny I think she 
must be the Baby Buttercup.’ Then the children 
were gone. 

“ ‘What did I tell you?’ asked one of the butter¬ 
cups of the tiny blossom. ‘You will never grow. You 
are a pale, sickly flower. “Baby Buttercup” is in¬ 
deed a fine name for you!’ And the taller buttercups 
laughed at the poor little flower. 

“A few days later the children came through the 
field again. This time the oldest girl carried a flower¬ 
pot filled with earth, and she had a knife in her hand. 

“ ‘What will become of us?’ the buttercups asked 
one another. But the children did not notice the but¬ 
tercups this time. They were watching to see what 
the tallest girl was doing. 

41 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“She dug the Baby Buttercup up by the roots and 
planted her in the little flowerpot. Then the girl 
carried the flowerpot home and placed it on the 
window sill. 

“Baby Buttercup grew tall and yellow, and every¬ 
body said, What a handsome plant! And how yellow 
the blossom!’ This pleased the flower as she had 
never been pleased before. Every day the tallest girl 
watered the plant. 

“The sunbeams, too, came in the morning to play 
with her. One day the tallest girl came into the room 
with a vase of flowers. She placed them on the 
window sill just next to Baby Buttercup. 

“Then she held up the flowerpot and said, ‘Oh, 
my dear Baby Buttercup! You are no longer a baby 
blossom, but the tallest and fairest flower of all!’ 
And she kissed the yellow blossom and then set the 
flowerpot down and went out. 

“The buttercups in the vase looked at each other 
in dismay, for they had never dreamed that this won- 

42 


BUNNY HEARS ABOUT BABY BUTTERCUP 


derful plant could be pale, sickly little Baby Butter¬ 
cup. 

“And they said to one another, ‘To think that we 
must wither in a few days and then die, while that 
Baby Buttercup who looked as if she would never 
grow up is here, root and all, and will be here all 
summer long.’ 

“Then one wise old buttercup said, ‘But such is 
the way of the world, and of what use is it to 
complain?’ ” 


> 


43 


GRANDMA RABBIT GIVES A PARTY 


Very early one morning during Aunt Sarah’s 
visit, Grandma Rabbit came over to Bunny Bob-tail’s 
house. 

“I wonder if a little bunny I know would like to 
visit me to-morrow and have a party?” asked 
Grandma. 

Bunny Bob-tail jumped around in great glee. “Oh, 
what a nice grandma I have!” he exclaimed. “And 
may I ask Johnny Rabbit?” he inquired eagerly. 

“Indeed you may, and eight other little bunnies, 
so that there will be ten in all,” Grandma replied. 

Then Bunny Bob-tail scampered off to invite his 
friends to the party. Johnny Rabbit and all the 
others accepted. 

It seemed that to-morrow would never arrive, but 
when at last it did come, Bunny Bob-tail was up 

44 


GRANDMA RABBIT GIVES A PARTY 

bright and early and asked his mother when the party 
was to begin. 

“Not until two o’clock this afternoon,” his mother 
told him. 

Then he and Johnny Rabbit played store until it 
was time to change their clothes. At two o’clock all 
the little rabbits had arrived at Grandma’s, and such 
a merry time as they had! 

First they played ball, then farmer in the dell 
and other good games. Johnny Rabbit was “it” ten 
times for tag. When they played hide and seek, 
Little Gray Rabbit, one of the visitors, hid in a hay¬ 
stack and could not be found for a very long time. 

After they had finished with the games, Aunt Sarah 
Rabbit called the bunnies over to the table, which 
was spread out on the lawn. What a variety of good 
things those little bunnies saw! There was every¬ 
thing that they could wish for. 

Johnny Rabbit liked the lettuce sandwiches best, 
but Bunny Bob-tail’s favorites were chocolate cake 

45 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

and strawberry ice cream. How he did eat that ice 
cream! I am sure he had four whole dishes of it. 

The bunnies played some more games and, after 
thanking Grandma Rabbit for the splendid party, 
they all set out for home. 

That night Bunny Bob-tail did not sleep well. 
“Mother,” he called in a very weak voice, “I feel 
very queer. I shouldn’t wonder if I had eaten too 
much ice cream.” 

Mother Rabbit was sure that was just the trouble, 
and soon she brought some bitter-tasting medicine 
for Bunny Bob-tail to take. He did not like it one bit. 

“When rabbits eat as much as elephants, they 
must expect to be sick,” was what Mother Rabbit 
said to her son. 


46 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL HEARS 
A NEW STORY 


One night Bunny Bob-tail begged his Aunt Sarah 
Rabbit to tell him a new story about a king, and so 
his aunt began: “There once lived a king who liked 
very much to wander through the forest all alone. 
He would disguise himself as a peasant and spend 
the whole day walking through the deep, dark woods. 

“It happened one day that he was lost in the 
forest. Whichever way he turned, it seemed that he 
went farther and farther away from his palace. 

“Finally, when night came on, the king said, T 
will lie on this soft moss and sleep, and to-morrow 
at daybreak I will try again to find the right path.’ 

“Just then he heard voices. They seemed to come 
nearer and nearer to him. 

“Soon the king saw by the light of a lantern, which 

47 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

they carried, two dwarfs. They, too, decided to pass 
the night where the king was already resting. 

“Then one of the dwarfs spoke, ‘Ah, we are not 
alone in the woods. May we ask who you are?’ 

“ ‘Certainly/ replied the king, ‘I am but a poor 
peasant who is lost in the great forest. I was about 
to go to sleep when I heard your voices and saw your 
lantern.’ 

“The dwarfs were evidently satisfied that the 
stranger was an honest man, for they blew out their 
lantern and lay down to sleep beside him. 

“Suddenly from the distance they heard the tramp¬ 
ing of horses’ hoofs and a long, low whistle. One 
of the dwarfs was awake in an instant. 

“ ‘Follow me as quickly as you can,’ he whispered 
to the king, ‘or we shall be lost.’ 

“The king arose quietly, knowing that danger must 
be near, and followed the dwarf. 

“In a very few minutes the king found himself 
in a large, hollow tree, and both the dwarfs were with 

48 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL HEARS A NEW STORY 

him. They had no sooner concealed themselves in 
the tree than the horses were heard tramping along 
the path directly in front of them. 

“The men on horseback were talking. One of 
them said, ‘The king must be in this forest, for he 
was seen here this afternoon. Now is the time to 
seize him and put him in prison. He can’t be very 
far from here.’ 

“The king, not knowing that he had any enemies 
in the world, was greatly amazed at these words. 

“When the men and their horses were far away 
from the hollow tree, one of the dwarfs said, ‘That 
was a narrow escape for us. That band of robbers 
were looking for the king to take him to prison, but 
I have heard that they take any one they find.’ 

“ ‘But I am the king,’ said the man who was 

* 

dressed as a peasant. 

“Of course the two dwarfs were astonished at this 
news. Then the king told them about his going into 
the forest and losing his way. 

49 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“The dwarf who had told him about the robbers 
said, ‘To-morrow these bad men will again scour the 
woods for you. I know the paths of the forest well, 
so it would be wise for us to start back to the palace 
at once.’ 

“The second dwarf wished to go, too; so the 
three started at once for the palace, walking as cau¬ 
tiously as they could. The dwarf who knew the way 
walked ahead carrying the lantern. It was morning 
when they arrived at the palace gate. The dwarfs 
would have said good-by to the king there, but he 
insisted on their going into the palace and‘having 
breakfast. 

“Then after breakfast, the king himself showed 
the dwarfs a wonderful suite of rooms and, turning 
to the little men said, ‘This is to be your home for 
all time, if you wish to have it so. For you were 
kind to both the peasant and the king and, when 
you could easily have fled in time of danger, you 
saved the life of one whom you thought to be 

SO 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL HEARS A NEW STORY 

a peasant. Then, again, you risked your lives to 
conduct me to the palace.’ 

“The dwarfs were overjoyed to think that such 
good fortune had befallen them, and from that day 
lived happily in the great palace. 

“The king’s soldiers found the band of robbers 
the very next day, and they were put in prison and 
so never again troubled the inhabitants of that 
country.” 

Aunt Sarah looked at Bunny Bob-tail a few 
minutes after she had finished, and what do you 
suppose? Bunny Bob-tail was fast asleep! 


SI 


AUNT SARAH TELLS ANOTHER STORY 

“I’d love to hear one of your very best stories, 
Aunt Sarah,” said Bunny Bob-tail one very rainy 
afternoon. Then he curled up on the sofa beside his 
aunt and she told him one of her very best stories. 

“It all happened long ago when there were only 
brown rabbits in the world,” began Aunt Sarah. 

“Was it before I was born?” inquired Bunny 
Bob-tail. 

“Oh, dear, yes,” his aunt answered. “It was 
hundreds of years ago. In a great dark forest there 
lived a witch and she was sometimes friendly to the 
animals of the forest, but at other times she was 
harsh and cruel to them. 

“One day a brown rabbit came to the witch’s 
house and asked for food, for he could find none in 
the woods. 

“ ‘If you will live here and be my servant, I will 

52 


AUNT SARAH TELLS ANOTHER STORY 

give you food/ said the witch, ‘otherwise you must 
starve.’ 

“Now of course the rabbit didn’t wish to starve, 
and so he promised to live in the witch’s house and 
be her servant. 

“But she was a hard mistress, and made the poor 
creature work all day, so that he could never go out of 
doors and play in the fresh air. 

“One day the little brown rabbit grew tired of it 
all and made up his mind to run away. He waited 
until the witch was asleep, then he ran quietly out 
of the house and on his way through the forest. 

“But the witch was only pretending to sleep and 
ran after the bunny, caught him and brought him 
back to the house. 

“ ‘So you would leave me after I saved your life,’ 
she said angrily. 

“The poor creature was so scared he could say 
nothing. Then the witch went on, ‘Hereafter I mean 
to tie you, so that you shall not escape.’ 

53 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“Then she tied the brown rabbit so that he could 
not escape. He was very unhappy. 

“After many days a kind fairy came to the witch’s 
house. This fairy could not be seen or heard by the 
witch. 

“She said to the rabbit, ‘I am a fairy and will be 
your friend. The queen of the fairies protects all the 
forest creatures, and has sent me to rescue you.’ 

“ When I tap with my wand three times,’ she 
continued, ‘you must stand very still. You will see 
a great white cloud in the room, and it will cover 
you over. But do not fear, for all will be well.’ 

“The fairy tapped three times with her wand and 
the brown rabbit saw the great white cloud fill the 
room. 

“In a few moments the air was cleared, and the 
witch was sound asleep. The rabbit escaped then, 
but some of the great white cloud had covered him, 
and always afterward he was a white bunny. And 
that is how there happened to be white rabbits.” 

54 


A STORY ABOUT A LION 


“I’d like to hear a story about a lion, and a wolf 
and a fox,” said Bunny Bob-tail to his auntie, the 
last night of her visit. 

Aunt Sarah thought for a long time, then she told 
the rabbit this story: 

“One day a fox sat wondering who was the king 
of the animals, for it happened that he had never 
heard any one say just who was king. 

“Soon a wolf came by and the fox said, ‘Mr. Wolf, 
who is king of the animals?’ 

“Now Mr. Wolf hadn’t the slightest idea, so he 
answered, ‘I’m sure I don’t know. But Mr. Beaver 
is down at the water’s edge. Let’s go and ask him.’ 

“So off they went and asked the beaver who the 
king of the animals was. Mr. Beaver didn’t know but 
he thought that Mr. Squirrel ought to be able to 
tell, for he had traveled all over the woods. 


A STORY ABOUT A LION 


“When they arrived at Mr. Squirrel’s house, they 
asked all together, Who is king of the animals?’ 

“And Mr. Squirrel answered, ‘Oh, I can’t tell you 
that. You should ask Mr. Owl, who is so wise. He 
knows everything.’ 

“Then they went to see Mr. Owl, who was so wise, 
and Mr. Owl, after hearing what was wanted, said, 
‘Is it possible that you creatures have lived in the 
forest all your lives, and don’t know who is the king 
of the animals? The lion is the king of the animals, 
and here he comes down the path now. I’d advise you 
not to be around when he comes, for he is apt to be 
hungry.’ 

“Of course all the creatures scampered off in dif¬ 
ferent directions, and they always remembered who 
the king of the animals was.” 


56 


MRS. BLACK RABBIT’S SUNFLOWER 


It was a warm, sunny day in summer, and Mrs. 
Black Rabbit had taken Johnny to the beach. Bunny 
Bob-tail’s mother had gone to spend the day with a 
sick friend, and had left the bunny to take care of 
himself. 

“I should like very much to take you with me,” 
she had said, “but I fear you would be noisy, and 
you would disturb Miss White Rabbit, as she is quite 
ill. 

“So, Bunny Bob-tail, I shall depend upon you to 
take very good care of yourself all day. I think I 
can trust you not to leave the yard, and please do 
nothing of which I shall be ashamed. 

“Father Rabbit will be home to lunch and I have 
left some cup custards on the ice for you both.” 

Bunny Bob-tail was extremely fond of cup custards 

57 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

and wished that lunch would be in a jiffy. Then he 
told his mother that he would jump rope and read 
his new story book and play jackstones. 

“After that I’ll bounce my ball against the fence,” 
said the bunny. So Mrs. Rabbit went away, feeling 
glad that she had such a good son. 

Bunny Bob-tail played all the morning, and when 
his father came to lunch they ate the cup custards. 
Bunny told his father about all the things he had 
done. 

When his father went to work in the afternoon, 
Bunny Bob-tail was rather lonesome. “I’m tired of 
all my games,” he said to himself. “I wish I could 
find something to do.” 

Just then he looked over the fence between his 
house and Johnny Rabbit’s. “I wonder if I could hit 
that big sunflower right in the middle of its face,” 
he said out loud. 

He threw the ball, and it hit the sunflower 
squarely in the face. Not only that, but the stem of 

58 



MRS. BLACK RABBIT’S SUNFLOWER 

the flower broke and the sunflower drooped sadly. 

That night Mrs. Black Rabbit said, “Bunny Bob- 
tail, did you see any bad boys in my garden while I 
was away? My sunflower is broken, you see.” 

“Oh, Mrs. Black Rabbit,” cried Bunny, “it wasn’t 
a bad boy, but a bad rabbit. It was I who tried to see 
if I could hit the middle of your big sunflower with 
my ball. I’m very sorry.” Then he ran into his 
house and upstairs, where he cried for a long time. 

His mother found him asleep when she returned, 
and the next morning she heard from Bunny Bob- 
tail the story of the sunflower. But he had learned 
a lesson, and he never threw his ball at Mrs. Black 
Rabbit’s flowers again. 


59 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL PLAYS A TRICK 


One fine day Mr. Rabbit, Bunny Bob-tail’s father, 
and Mrs. Rabbit, Bunny’s mother, went visiting in 
the city. 

They left Bunny Bob-tail at home, warning him 
to stay right in his own yard, and to invite Johnny 
Rabbit over to play with him. 

When they had gone, Bunny Bob-tail said, “Yes, 
I really am going to be the very best bunny in the 
whole town. I’ll not leave my yard for one instant.” 

And Bunny Bob-tail did as he said. All the morn¬ 
ing he and Johnny Rabbit played in the tent in 
Bunny Bob-tail’s yard. 

First they played circus. What a splendid time they 
had! Bunny Bob-tail was the clown. He danced and 
jumped and sang songs. Next he was a great lion shut 
up in a cage. He roared and made believe he was 
trying to escape. 


60 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL PLAYS A TRICK 

Johnny Rabbit was the man who took the tickets. 
Of course there wasn’t anybody to give tickets to 
him, but he made believe the people were crowding 
and pushing to get in and see the wonderful show. 

Then Bunny Bob-tail found an old dishpan. He 
beat it with a stick. It sounded very much like a 
drum. Johnny Rabbit ran home to get his horn. 
Then the two made fine music. 

The circus lasted until noontime. Then Bunny 
Bob-tail said, “Johnny, wouldn’t you like to stay to 
lunch with me? Guess what we have? There are 
sandwiches and oranges and chocolate pudding.” 

“Oh, I’d love to!” exclaimed Johnny Rabbit. “But 
first I must run home and ask my mother. Wait just 
three minutes, and I’ll come back and tell you what 
she says.” 

Bunny Bob-tail waited, and sure enough, Johnny 
Rabbit came back in three minutes, saying that his 
mother had given him permission to stay. She had 
also given him a very delicious-looking squash pie. 

61 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


How those two little bunnies did eat! It was so 
warm out of doors that Bunny Bob-tail set a table in 
his tent. 

“Shall we play circus this afternoon?” asked 
Johnny Rabbit. 

“No, I think we’ll have something different,” said 
Bunny Bob-tail. But he didn’t say what it was. 

When the table was cleared and the dishes washed 
and wiped and put away, Bunny Bob-tail said, “Let 
us play school. I’ll be the teacher, and you’ll be the 
pupils.” 

“How can I be more than one pupil?” inquired 
Johnny Rabbit. 

“Well, I took more than one part in the circus. 
Can’t you do the same?” asked Bunny. 

So they played school, and I’m sorry to say that 
Johnny Rabbit was such an unruly pupil that his 
teacher had to scold him often. 

He wouldn’t study hard, and his writing was very 
poor. So Bunny Bob-tail said, “I shall have to see 

62 



The naughty Bunny Bob-tail hid himself in a clothes basket. 



















































































BUNNY BOB-TAIL PLAYS A TRICK 

your father, Master Rabbit, and tell him that you are 
wasting your time in school.” 

After that school was dismissed, and the rabbits 
played ball and tag and many other games. Then 
they had supper, and Johnny Rabbit said he must go 
home as it was growing dark. 

When Bunny Bob-tail was left alone, he said, “I’m 
sure that I have been a very good rabbit all day. 
Surely my father and mother should be proud of me. 
In fact, I’ve been so good all day that I will be 
naughty now. I’ll play a trick on my father and 
mother.” 

Then the naughty Bunny Bob-tail hid himself in 
a clothes basket out near the tent. He covered him¬ 
self all up so that even the tips of his ears didn’t show. 

By and by Mr. and Mrs. Rabbit came home. They 
went into the house and called, “Bunny Bob-tail! 
Bunny Bob-tail!” But no matter where they looked 
the bunny could not be found. 

Then Mr. Rabbit went over to Johnny Rabbit’s 

65 



THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 
house, but Johnny Rabbit was safe in bed and hadn’t 

I 

seen Bunny Bob-tail since suppertime. 

After a long time, the naughty little rabbit heard 
his mother crying because she thought her son was 
lost. Then he stole softly into the house. He told 
his mother about the trick he had played. 

Just then Mr. Rabbit came in, and after he had 
heard the story, he said, “Bunny Bob-tail, it is time 
you learned not to play tricks.” And Bunny Bob-tail 
didn’t play any more tricks for a long, long time. 





THE BUNNIES PLAY SEESAW 


“I think we ought to go for a nice, long walk this 
afternoon,” said Bunny Bob-tail as he ran into 
Johnny Rabbit’s yard one day. “Ask your mother if 
you may go with me.” 

Mrs. Black Rabbit gave her permission, and the 
two littie friends wandered off down the road. They 
saw many interesting things on the way. Far along 
the road was a farm house with a big yard. Just over 
the low wall Bunny Bob-tail saw something which 
attracted his attention. 

“Oh, Johnny, look over there! I see something 
nice. It is a seesaw, I do believe. Let’s jump over 
the wall and have just one ride on it.” That was 
what Bunny Bob-tail said. 

“But I’m afraid,” said Johnny. 

“Nonsense,” returned Bunny Bob-tail. “There 
isn’t anything to be afraid of. Come on and I’ll show 

67 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

you how to have a ride.” Then the two bunnies 
jumped over the wall and were soon on the seesaw 
having a thrilling time. 

At first they didn’t go up very far, and they didn’t 
go down very far, but soon they grew braver, and 
while Bunny Bob-tail was shrieking from his end of 
the seesaw, high up in the air, Johnny Rabbit 
laughed from his end of the seesaw down on the 
ground. Then Johnny went up and Bunny went 
down. 

“This is the very best fun I’ve had for a long 
time,” cried Bunny Bob-tail. “I wonder if my father 
will make a seasaw for me. I’ll ask him this very 
day when I go home. Let’s go faster.” 

So they started to go very fast, but alas for the 
two bunnies! Both of them were thrown to the 
ground, and there was not much soft grass where 
they fell. 

For several moments neither one spoke. “Are you 
hurt, Johnny?” asked Bunny Bob-tail at last. 

68 


THE BUNNIES PLAY SEESAW 

“I’ve bumped my head and scratched my ear,” 
sobbed poor little Johnny Rabbit in a very feeble 
voice. 

“I’ll help you home, and don’t cry,” said Bunny 
Bob-tail. And he helped his playmate over the wall 
and down the road toward home. 

“Seesaws are for children, and not for bunnies, I 
do believe,” Bunny Bob-tail remarked when he and 
Johnny reached home at last. 


69 


SOME QUEER LITTLE LIGHTS 

“It is such a warm evening,” said Bunny Bob-tail’s 
mother one summer night, “that you may stay out 
and play with Johnny Rabbit until it is dark.” 

“Oh, Mother,” begged Bunny, “may we go over 
and play ball in the field? It is such a fine, big place, 
and there is so much more room than in our yard. 
Please let us go.” 

“I think that you have been such a good bunny 
all day that you may play ball in the field,” replied 
his mother. “Will you remember to start for home 
when it begins to get dark?” 

“Yes, indeed, Mother,” said Bunny Bob-tail, and 
in a short time he and his chum were on their way 
to the field with a bat and ball. 

They had a wonderful game. They ran and caught 

70 





SOME QUEER LITTLE LIGHTS 

very high balls and jumped just like some little boys 
I have seen play that game. 

It was very exciting for the two bunnies to be 
alone in the field. But they played so long they 
didn’t realize it was growing dark. 

Suddenly Johnny Rabbit cried, “Oh, Bunny 
Bob-tail, you never can catch this ball. Look, I’ll 
bat one way up that will whizz right up into the 
clouds!” 

And Johnny did bat a ball that went up—very far 
up—and didn’t come down, at least where the bun¬ 
nies could find it. 

“Oh, dear me, Johnny Rabbit, my red, white and 
blue ball is lost. I’m sorry to lose it.” 

“Cheer up, Bunny Bob-tail, I’m sure we’ll find 
it,” said his friend. 

Just then they saw something queer. They looked 
like funny little creatures with lanterns. 

“Johnny Rabbit, let us run quickly. I think these 
are hobgoblins,” said Bunny Bob-tail. 

71 



THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“I wish we had gone home before dark as Mother 
Rabbit warned us to,” said Bunny, now terribly 
scared. 

Then those two bunnies scampered through the 
field, and when they reached home, breathlessly told 
their mothers about the queer little creatures carry¬ 
ing lanterns. 

Mr. Black Rabbit and Bunny Bob-tail’s father 
were smoking on the front piazza. “Those were fire¬ 
flies, not hobgoblins,” said Mr. Black Rabbit. “I’m 
sure they wouldn’t harm you, but if you had come 
home early you wouldn’t have been scared, because 
fireflies never come out until it is dark.” 

That night two little bunnies fell asleep and 
dreamed about queer little creatures who flitted 
through the air like sparks of fire. But Bunny didn’t 
find his ball for a whole week. 


72 


THE PINKY RABBITS CALL ON 
BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


Mrs. Rabbit had not gone to town for a long time, 
and one morning she started off bright and early. 

“Well, I suppose I must play all alone to-day,” 
said Bunny Bob-tail, “because Johnny Rabbit has an 
earache and must stay in bed.” 

So he went into the yard and played for a while. 
By and by he heard a noise in the road. Four funny 
little rabbits were looking over the fence at him. 

“Good morning, Bunny Bob-tail,” they said all 
together. “May we come in and use your swing? 
We are very good rabbits. Please let us come in.” 

Bunny Bob-tail was very lonesome, and so he 
opened the gate. “We like you, Bunny Bob-tail,” 
said the four funny little rabbits. 

“But I don’t know who you are,” said Bunny. 

“We are the Pinky Rabbits,” said the oldest one 

73 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

of the four grandly. “Our mother is very careful 
about the friends we choose, although she doesn’t 
object in the least to you.” It made Bunny Bob-tail 
feel quite proud to hear that he was well thought of 
by the Pinkys’ mother. 

“Why do they call you the Pinky Rabbits?” in¬ 
quired Bunny Bob-tail, wonderingly. 

“Because our eyes are so very pink—pinker than 
those of any other rabbits,” said the second oldest 
rabbit. “And each of us has a pink spot on his 
nose, which shows that Grandfather was a king in 
his day,” he continued. 

Bunny Bob-tail was much impressed. Then he 
played with his new friends, and found them to be 
excellent companions. 

After a time the oldest one asked, “I wonder if I 
may have a drink of water?” 

“Certainly,” answered Bunny, wishing to be very 
polite to his guests, “in just a jiffy I’ll run in and 
get a glass for you.” 


74 


THE PINKY RABBITS CALL ON BOB-TAIL 


“Oh, don’t trouble,” replied the oldest of the 
Pinky rabbits. “I’m sure I can find a glass on your 
shelf. Now you stay right out here and I’ll help my¬ 
self to a glass of nice, cool water, because I surely am 
thirsty.” 

Into the house the Pinky Rabbit ran. The others 
played at jumping rope and hopscotch. It was 
great fun! By and by he returned. Bunny Bob-tail 
was having so much fun he did not notice how long 
the new rabbit had been gone. 

Late in the afternoon the rabbits said they had 
stayed long enough and must go. They told Bunny 
Bob-tail that they had had a delightful time. 

Mother Rabbit returned in time for supper. She 
saw the opened ice chest and stood back in surprise. 

“Bunny, was any one near the ice chest to-day?” 
she asked. 

“No, Mother, nobody was there,” answered her 
son. 

Mrs. Rabbit was puzzled. “But where is the 

75 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

vegetable salad I put on the ice?” she asked. “There 
isn’t anything left but the dish.” 

“I had some visitors—the Pinky Rabbits,” said 
Bunny Bob-tail after a few minutes. 

“Did they go inside?” asked his mother. 

“Only the oldest Pinky Rabbit. He was thirsty 
and went in for a drink of water,” said Bunny. 
“That explains everything,” said Bunny’s mother. 
Then she told the bunny about the importance of 
keeping good company, and warned him to play only 
with good rabbits in the future. 


76 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL GOES VISITING 


Bunny Bob-tail’s aunt, Mrs. White Rabbit, came 
to see Bunny’s mother one day. She thought Bunny 
Bob-tail a very well behaved little rabbit, so she said, 
“Bunny, I wonder if you would like to come home 
with me to-morrow morning. 

“You could run around in the fields all day, and 
at night Mr. White Rabbit could take you home.” 

“Oh, I’d just love to go with you!” cried Bunny 
Bob-tail eagerly. “I’ll ask Mother Rabbit if I may 
go, and if she lets me, I’ll be a very good bunny.” 

Then he scampered off to find his mother, and to 
ask her if he might go home with his aunt to spend 
the day. 

“Are you sure that you will behave well all day 
long?” inquired Mrs. Rabbit, for she remembered 

77 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

a few of her son’s adventures when she wasn’t near 
by to watch him. 

“I’ll be the best bunny in the whole town, if you’ll 
just let me go,” said Bunny Bob-tail. So the matter 
was settled then and there. 

Early the next morning, I think before the sun was 
up, one little rabbit was wide-awake, thinking of the 
delightful time he would have at the home of the 
White Rabbits. 

He could hardly wait for his mother to dress him, 
he was so anxious to start. He wore a handsome new 
suit of white linen with a red tie. Mrs. Rabbit looked 
proudly at Bunny Bob-tail. 

It was time to go, after many minutes of waiting, 
so Bunny Bob-tail kissed his mother and father good- 
by and started for his aunt’s house. 

He was a very good bunny all the way, at least 
so Mrs. White Rabbit said, and she could tell a good 
bunny when she saw one. 

After a while they arrived at Mrs. White Rabbit’s 

78 



Down went Bunny Bob-tail, chair, jam and all. 














































































































































BUNNY BOB-TAIL GOES VISITING 

house. Little White Bunny was at the gate to meet 
them. Bunny Bob-tail was very glad to see his 
little cousin, and they ran off into the fields and 
played for a long time. 

There were many things to be seen. There was 
an old barn and a swing. There was a playhouse. 
And best of all, there was a wonderful tent with a 
box of sand. The bunnies shoveled the sand and 
made believe they were at the beach. 

“This is a fine place!” exclaimed Bunny Bob-tail. 
He was enjoying every minute of his visit. 

“I wonder if it is nearly time for dinner,” said 
little White Bunny. “I’m awfully hungry.” 

“So am I,” said Bunny Bob-tail. “Let’s go into the 
house and see if your mother wants us. Maybe she 
called us and we didn’t hear her.” 

So into the house they went. Mrs. White Rabbit 
was nowhere to be seen. “I guess she has gone up 
the road to the store,” said little White Bunny. 

Bunny Bob-tail looked all around the kitchen. 

81 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

Then he went into the pantry. Little White Bunny 
had run outdoors again and was in the swing. 

There was something very nice in a glass jar on 
the pantry shelf. “It looks like jam,” thought Bunny 
Bob-tail. Then he found a nice piece of bread and 
before long he was spreading jam, thick, raspberry 
jam, on the slice of bread. 

“I do love jam,” he said, helping himself to an¬ 
other spoonful. “I’d like to live in a country where 
there were jam houses, and jam trees, and jam every¬ 
thing. Then I’d be very happy.” 

Bunny Bob-tail was standing on a chair while he 
was eating the jam and telling himself what he would 
like. 

Suddenly the chair tipped over. Down went 
Bunny Bob-tail, chair, jam and all. Just then Mrs. 
White Rabbit arrived home from the store. 

When she saw the naughty bunny she said, “I 
have brought some ice cream from the store. But 
now that you’ve eaten the jam, I’m afraid the ice 

82 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL GOES VISITING 

cream would make you sick. But dear, dear! go right 
upstairs and put on one of Little White Rabbit’s 
suits. Your own is a sight!” 

Bunny Bob-tail went upstairs and changed his 
clothes. He was covered with jam, from head to foot. 
He was greatly ashamed. And his aunt had not 
scolded him a bit. 

He ran downstairs and told Mrs. White Rabbit 
that he was very sorry. That night when he went 
home, he told his mother what had happened. 
“Bunny Bob-tail,” said Mrs. Rabbit, “I hope this 
will teach you a lesson. Never take what belongs to 
somebody else.” And Bunny Bob-tail remembered 
that lesson for many days. 


83 


WHAT HAPPENED TO A DISH OF CANDY 


“I know what one little bunny is fond of,” said 
Mrs. Rabbit one rainy afternoon, when there was 
nothing to do but stay indoors. 

“Apple pie!” cried Bunny Bob-tail. 

“Guess again,” his mother said. 

“Peanut taffy,” guessed Bunny. 

“Right this time, and if you’ll get me my little 
blue and white apron from the drawer, I’ll make 
some of it right now,” said Mrs. Rabbit. 

Bunny Bob-tail was delighted, and ran quickly 
to find the apron. In a short time the peanut taffy 
was ready and Mrs. Rabbit poured it into a dish. “It 
will cool more quickly if I put it on the back porch,” 
she told her son. 

So out on the porch the dish of candy was set 
Bunny Bob-tail could hardly wait until it was time 
to eat it. He kept watching the clock. His mother 
had said it would be cool in ten minutes. 


84 


WHAT HAPPENED TO A DISH OF CANDY 


“Sixty seconds make a minute,” observed Bunny. 
“Three minutes have passed, now five, seven, nine, 
ten!” Then he jumped up and ran out for his candy. 
He could not see it anywhere. 

“Oh, Mother Rabbit,” he cried, more disappointed 
than you can imagine, “my candy is gone, every bit 
of it, dish and all!” 

Mrs. Rabbit looked all around. Out in the yard 
under a lilac bush was a strange dog, eating the 
candy as if it were the first food he had tasted for 
days. 

“The dog was very hungry,” said Bunny Bob- 
tail, after watching the peanut taffy disappear. “I’m 
sorry for the poor dog, and I’ll give him a bone, even 
though he did take my candy.” 

Then he found a nice bone for the poor hungry 
dog, who enjoyed the most wonderful feast he had 
had for a long time. Soon Mrs. Rabbit found a box 
of delicious peppermints for Bunny Bob-tail, and he 
ate as many as were good for a bunny of his age. 

85 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL AT THE POND 


“Mother, may I go down in the field with Johnny 
Rabbit and play?” asked Bunny Bob-tail one after¬ 
noon. 

“Yes, you may, if you’ll stay in the field,” replied 
his mother. For she knew well how hard it was for 
Bunny Bob-tail to stay very long in one place. 

So off scampered Bunny and Johnny Rabbit, and 
soon they were down in the big field playing. At first 
they played ball, but they soon got tired of that. 
Then they played keeping store, and they had great 
fun taking turns at being the storeman. The grocer 
measured out the sugar and salt and spices. Of 
course the bunnies used plain dirt for the things they 
sold, and for money they used pebbles. They played 
this for more than an hour. 

Then Johnny Rabbit said, “Oh, let’s go down to 

86 



Splash! down into the deep water he went. 





































































































































BUNNY BOB-TAIL AT THE POND 

the pond and watch the boys swim. They have lots 
of fun diving off a big rock.” 

“But my mother told me to stay in the field,” 
answered Bunny Bob-tail, remembering his mother’s 
warning. 

“Well, if you want to stay in the field you may, 
but I’m going down to the pond and have some fun,” 
said Johnny Rabbit. 

“I guess Mother won’t mind if I go just this once,” 
said Bunny Bob-tail, and off he ran with his play¬ 
mate. That was always the way with Bunny Bob-tail. 
He thought that his mother would not care if he 
minded himself instead of her. Of course this was a 
very naughty thing to do. 

When they arrived at the pond, sure enough, there 
were at least a dozen boys swimming and splashing 
about in the water. Some were diving off the high 
rock, as Johnny Rabbit had said. 

Bunny Bob-tail was delighted. He had never seen 
boys swimming before. “Let’s go up on that rock and 

89 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

watch the boys from there,” he said to Johnny. “I’m 
sure that we can see them much better there than 
from here at the edge of the pond.” 

Johnny Rabbit didn’t need to be coaxed, and soon 
those two rabbits had climbed up to the very tiptop 
of the rock. 

“You little bunnies ought to stay off this rock,” 
said one of the boys. “You know the water is deep 
around here, and if you ever fell in, you might not 
come out again.” 

Bunny Bob-tail moved back a little. So did 
Johnny Rabbit. 

Just a few minutes later a boy called out, “Watch 
me dive; this is going to be a good one.” 

Then that little Bunny Bob-tail forgot and ran to 
the edge of the high rock, and splash! down into 
the deep water he went. 

One of the boys who was swimming caught the 
rabbit just in time when the bunny’s ears appeared 
above the water. The boy carried him to the shore. 

90 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL AT THE POND 


Poor Bunny Bob-tail was terribly scared. And 
besides, his clothes were just as wet as could be. 

Two of the boys carried him home, and his mother 
was very much frightened when she heard what had 
happened. “Are you ever going to learn to obey 
your mother?” she asked, and she sent him straight 
to bed. 


91 


WHY BUNNY BOB-TAIL DIDN’T GET 

SOME TOYS 


One fine day Mr. Rabbit announced to his family 
that he was going to the city to do some shopping. 

When Mrs. Rabbit heard this she said, “Oh, do 
go and visit Aunt Sarah Rabbit, who lives a few 
miles outside the city.” 

So Mr. Rabbit, wishing to be obliging, promised 
to visit Aunt Sarah. 

He started quite early, and before noontime he 
was in the stores shopping, and buying everything 
which his wife had written in the list of things to be 
bought. 

When he had bought everything, he saw some 
wonderful toys which he knew Bunny Bob-tail would 
be delighted to have. 

There was a tiny bear which could do tricks on a 
swing, and a dancing monkey, and a clown who could 
jump high up in the air if you wound him up. 

92 


WHY BUNNY BOB-TAIL DIDN’T GET TOYS 

Mr. Rabbit bought these toys, and then, with more 
bundles than he could comfortably carry, he set out 
to find Miss Sarah Rabbit’s house. 

He followed the directions which his wife had 
given him and, toward the middle of the afternoon, 
he saw a little white house where Aunt Sarah 
lived. 

Mr. Rabbit thought it would be best to leave all 
his bundles on the porch while he went inside to pay 
his respects to Aunt Sarah. 

At four o’clock Aunt Sarah served tea and mar¬ 
malade and some delicious spice cakes, of which Mr. 
Rabbit was very fond. 

But while Miss Sarah Rabbit and Mr. Rabbit were 
chattering over the teacups, and having a most 
delightful time, what do you think was going on just 
outside on the porch? 

Some very mischievous boys were going down the 
road and, seeing all the bundles on Miss Sarah Rab¬ 
bit’s porch, they became curious to know just what 

93 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


was inside of those bundles. You will agree with me 
that they were all very naughty boys, when I tell 
you what they did. 

After opening each bundle, they emptied some of 
the contents into the brook by the side of the road, 
and filled the papers and boxes with sand or pebbles 
or moss. The bear on the swing, the dancing mon¬ 
key and the clown who could jump so high, were all 
kept by the bad boys. 

They tied the bundles and boxes up again so 
neatly that no one would ever know they had been 
opened. 

Finally it came time for Mr. Rabbit to start for 
home; so, after telling Miss Rabbit that he had spent 
an enjoyable afternoon, and inviting her to visit his 
family, he was on his way home with his bundles and 
boxes. 

Although it was after dark when Mr. Rabbit 
arrived at home, Bunny Bob-tail was waiting for his 
father. 


94 


WHY BUNNY BOB-TAIL DIDN’T GET TOYS 


“See what I have brought home from the city for 
you!” said Mr. Rabbit giving Bunny Bob-tail three 
little boxes. Bunny opened the first box. There 
was a piece of moss inside! The second and third 
boxes had pebbles! 

“I’m sure that I saw the man in the store put 
those toys in the boxes, when he handed them to 
me!” exclaimed Mr. Rabbit in great surprise. 

“This is the funniest sugar I ever saw,” said 
Mrs. Rabbit, who was opening her bundles. 

“It isn’t sugar at all. It’s sand!” she continued. 
“And instead of butter, I have some green moss. I 
think the next time I’ll do the shopping.” 

“It must be that some bad boys saw me leave 
those bundles on Miss Sarah Rabbit’s porch,” said 
Mr. Rabbit. 

“Oh, I understand it all now,” said his wife. 
“And I’d advise you to take your bundles inside 
hereafter when you go visiting.” 

And Mr. Rabbit always remembered to do that, 

95 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


for he had learned a lesson. Little Bunny Bob-tail 
had to wait for his new toys until Mr. Rabbit went 
to the city again. 


96 


THE BUNNIES PLAY “JACK AND 
THE BEANSTALK” 

Johnny Rabbit and Bunny Bob-tail had gone to 
Bunny’s grandma’s to spend the day, and Grandma 
had told them the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. 
The bunnies thought it the most exciting story they 
had ever heard. 

After lunch Grandma Rabbit took a nap and she 
told the little rabbits to stay in the yard and not to 
make too much noise. The bunnies were careful to 
do as she had asked. 

“I think it would be wonderful to play ‘Jack and 
the Beanstalk,’ ” said Bunny Bob-tail. 

“So it would,” cried Johnny Rabbit, eagerly. 
“Are you going to be Jack?” 

“Oh, no,” replied Bunny Bob-tail, “I want to be 
the great big giant and live in the castle.” 

97 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“What can we have for a beanstalk?” asked 
Bunny. But he had hardly uttered the words when 
he spied a ladder leaning against a big apple tree 
in Grandma’s yard. 

“What could be better?” he asked. Then he 
continued, “Now, Johnny, we’ll begin at the place 
where you climb the beanstalk. Get up on the 
ladder.” 

Johnny Rabbit got up on the ladder and found a 
comfortable branch to sit on. He thought it the most 
wonderful game they had ever played. “Oh, it’s just 
grand way up here, Bunny Bob-tail,” he called 
down. “Come on up.” 

“Of course I’ll come up,” answered Bunny Bob- 
tail, “because I’m the giant and my castle will have 
to be over on the other side of the apple tree.” He 

climbed the ladder quickly and soon had picked out 
a nice spot for his castle. 

No sooner had Bunny Bob-tail found his place in 
the tree than something dreadful happened. The 

98 


PLAYING “JACK AND THE BEANSTALK” 

ladder fell to the ground. The bunnies looked at 
each other in dismay. 

“However shall we get down?” asked Johnny 
Rabbit, quite scared. 

“I’m sure I don’t know,” said Bunny, who was 
also beginning to worry a little. 

However, they went on with the game, and what 
fun they had when Bunny Bob-tail roared like the 
giant! After they had finished playing, they both 
decided that they were very hungry. 

“Dear me,” cried Bunny Bob-tail, “I do wish that 
Grandma Rabbit would hurry up and finish her nap. 
She has been sleeping for a very long time.” 

“How awful it would be if we had to spend the 
night here!” Johnny Rabbit said. “We might fall 
from the tree and hurt ourselves.” 

Just then Grandma Rabbit’s voice was heard call¬ 
ing loudly, “Bunny Bob-tail! Johnny Rabbit! 
Where are you? Have you gone home?” 

“Here we are,” shouted the two bunnies joyfully. 

99 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“We are up in the apple tree and the ladder has 
fallen down.” 

“Whatever in the world made you get up there?” 
asked Grandma Rabbit, in amazement. 

“Well, you see, we were playing ‘Jack and the 
Beanstalk’,” explained Bunny Bob-tail, “and the lad¬ 
der was our beanstalk. I guess the wind must have 
blown it over, and we had to stay here until you 
came.” 

The bunnies were soon on the ground again, and 
then Grandma Rabbit asked them into the house 
to have some creamed chicken and coffee jelly, of 
which they were both fond. After supper, Grandma 
Rabbit went home with the bunnies and invited them 
to call on her again soon. 


100 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL AND THE BEE 


One morning when Bunny Bob-tail had gone to 
the store to buy some butter for his mother, he saw 
a beautiful rosebush in a garden. There was a fence 
around the garden. 

“That is a lovely rosebush,” said Bunny to him¬ 
self. “How pleased my mother would be to have one 
of those roses!” Then he saw a large pink rose 
which was sticking out through the fence. It seemed 
as if it had been placed there just for the little rabbit. 

Bunny Bob-tail looked at it for several moments 
and then made up his mind that he would pick it. 
“The lady who owns the garden has so many that 
I am sure she would be glad to give me just one,” 
he said aloud. 

As he was breaking off the stem, he felt a very 
sharp pain near one of his ears. “Dear me,” he cried, 

101 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“that is a thorn. I didn’t know that thorns could hurt 
so much.” 

Then he heard a funny little voice which said, 
“Oh, no, I am not a thorn. I am a bee, and I saw a 
naughty little bunny coming along the road looking 
at the rosebush where I live. I was sure that he 
meant to steal one of the roses. 

“I said to myself that I ought to teach that bunny 
a lesson and so I stung you right near your pink ear.” 

Bunny Bob-tail was very much ashamed. “I am 
sorry,” he said to the bee. “I thought the lady who 
owned the roses wouldn’t mind giving me just one, 
she has so many.” 

“She might have given you one, but you should 
have asked for it, and not stolen it,” replied the little 
bee. 

Bunny Bob-tail went on his way thinking over 
the lesson the bee had taught him. 


102 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL GETS A SCARE 


One morning Bunny Bob-tail’s mother said to him, 
“Bunny, I must send you over to the store for some 
groceries. Run over and ask Johnny Rabbit if he will 
go with you. 

“Perhaps he will help you carry the bundles, for 
there are several things to buy. I need sugar, and 
butter, and some tea.” 

“You forgot to say frosted cookies, didn’t you, 
Mother Rabbit?” asked Bunny Bob-tail. 

“Well, you may get some frosted cookies, if you 
like,” said his mother. 

Then Bunny Bob-tail went over to ask Johnny 
Rabbit if he would ask his mother to let him go to 
the store. 

“Yes, you may go, but be careful when you cross 
the road,” said Johnny’s mother. “I have seen not 
only rabbits but boys playing right in the middle of 

103 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

the road. When automobiles come along, I’m sure I 
don’t see how those rabbits and boys escape being 
run over.” 

Then Bunny Bob-tail and Johnny Rabbit started 
down the road in the direction of the store. 

When it was time for them to cross the street, they 
looked carefully both ways; then when they were all 
ready to go across, they heard an automobile horn 
down the road. 

Do you think they ran to get across? Oh, no, they 
stayed near the side of the road until the auto had 
passed. 

“Those were careful bunnies,” they heard the 
man who was driving say. “I wish some children 
would learn a lesson from them.” 

Soon the two rabbits were hurrying across the 
broad fields. They saw many pretty flowers. By and 
by they came to a cornfield. They had to pass by 
it to go to the store. Bunny Bob-tail suddenly 
screamed. 


104 



Then these two little bunnies ran home. 





























































































BUNNY BOB-TAIL GETS A SCARE 

“What’s the matter?” asked Johnny. 

a Oh, Johnny Rabbit, look over in the cornfield. 
There is a funny-looking man over here. I am afraid 
to go by him.” 

“I see him,” said Johnny Rabbit in a whisper. 

“Let’s go home, Johnny,” said Bunny Bob-tail, 
now very much frightened. 

“Yes, I think we’d better,” replied Johnny. 

Then these two little bunnies ran home, and Bunny 
Bob-tail’s mother was surprised to see them both 
come into the yard. 

“Where are my bundles?” asked Mrs. Rabbit. 

“Oh, Mother, we didn’t go to the store at all. We 
were on our way, and when we came to the cornfield, 
a bad man shook his arms at us and tried to catch 
us,” said Bunny Bob-tail. 

“That seems strange,” said his mother. “But I 
will go with you and I’ll see who the bad man is.” 

So they went through the fields, and when they 
came to the place where the man was, Bunny Bob- 

107 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


tail said, “There he is, Mother; don’t go near him.” 

Mrs. Rabbit looked and then she laughed. “Oh, 
Bunny Bob-tail!” she cried. “I’m ashamed of you 
for being so timid. That isn’t a man at all, but a 
scarecrow. Now you run on to the store with Johnny 
Rabbit and don’t be so silly in the future.” 


108 


HOW BUNNY DID AN ERRAND 


“Put on your sweater and cap, Bunny Bob-tail, 
and go to the store for a quart of vinegar,” said Mrs. 
Rabbit early one morning. “Try to hurry, for I 
expect company to lunch, and I must make some 
salad dressing.” 

Bunny Bob-tail was ready in a jiffy and ran down 
the road toward the village store. When he was half¬ 
way there, he saw the Pinky Rabbits out playing. 
They had not washed their faces and they looked 
very untidy. 

“Oh, good morning, Bunny Bob-tail,” they said 
all together. “Is that a molasses jug you have?” 

“No, it is a vinegar jug, and I must hurry to the 
store for my mother,” replied Bunny. 

“Vinegar?” asked the littlest of the Pinky Rab¬ 
bits. “And what is that?” 


109 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“Come and smell of the jug, while I take off the 
stopper,” said Bunny, trying to be agreeable. 

All the Pinky Rabbits came to smell of the jug, 
and Bunny Bob-tail suddenly wondered what his 
mother would think if she saw the dirty pink noses 
whiffing from her jug. 

The oldest Pinky Rabbit suddenly had an idea. 
Turning to the littlest Pinky, she said, “I’ll turn the 
jug over on its side and you hold on tight and you’ll 
have a nice ride down this hill.” 

The littlest Pinky Rabbit sat on the jug, and 
over and over he rolled. Soon Pinky received a toss 
which did not hurt him at all, although he cried. The 
jug, however, went all the way down the hill, and at 
the bottom it struck a rock, and broke into many 
pieces. 

“Oh, dear,” sobbed Bunny Bob-tail, “now I’ll 
have to go home and get another jug.” 

When he told his mother what had happened, she 
said, “I have told you many times not to play with 

110 


HOW BUNNY DID AN ERRAND 

the Pinky Rabbits, for no good ever comes of doing 
so.” 

Then she gave Bunny another jug, and this time 
he really came home with a quart of vinegar. 



Ill 


THE BUNNIES PLAY INDIAN 


“Let’s play Indian to-day,” said Bunny Bob-tail 
one afternoon when the little Gray Rabbits and 
Johnny Rabbit had come to play with him. 

“How do you play Indian?” asked the others all 
at the same time. 

“.Well,” said Bunny Bob-tail, always glad to give 
information to the other rabbits, “I heard my Aunt 
Sarah say once that when the Indians lived here long 
ago, they used to capture the white men.” 

“What does ‘capture’ mean?” inquired one of the 
little Gray Rabbits. 

“It means that they caught a white man and 
wouldn’t let him go,” explained Bunny Bob-tail, 
proudly. 

“I’d like to be the white man and have you capture 

; i 

me,” said the oldest of the three little Gray Rabbits, 
trying to show how brave he was. 

112 


THE BUNNIES PLAY INDIAN 

“Oh, that will be splendid,” said Johnny Rabbit, 
excitedly, and he hopped around because he could 
not wait to play Indian. 

Then the oldest of the three little Gray Rabbits 
wandered off alone and the other bunnies surrounded 
him with loud cries. “He is our prisoner!” yelled 
Bunny Bob-tail at the top of his voice. “And now 
we’ll take him down to the orchard and tie him to 
a tree.” 

So they marched the rabbit down to the orchard 
and tied him to a tree. Then they went back to the 
yard and played some more games. They forgot all 
about the oldest of the three little Gray Rabbits. 

After a long time Johnny Rabbit said, “Listen, I 
hear some one calling us. Who can it be? Let us go 
down to the orchard and find out.” 

Down to the orchard scampered all those bunnies, 
and there was the prisoner, Gray Rabbit, still tied 
to the tree, and very much tired out. 

“I don’t believe I care to play Indian very often,” 

113 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


he said, when the others had untied the rope. “How 
long were you going to keep me there?” 

“We honestly forgot you,” said Bunny Bob-tail. 
“But you know the Indians really kept their prison¬ 
ers for months and months.” 

“I’m glad I wasn’t a real prisoner, then,” said 
little Gray Rabbit, and home he ran. 


114 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL DOES SOME 

PAINTING 


One afternoon Mrs. Rabbit decided that she would 
clean out the attic, and she told Bunny Bob-tail to 
go out and play. Johnny Rabbit had gone away with 
his mother, and Bunny found it rather lonesome 
playing all alone. After a time he went into the 
cellar and looked around. 

There in the corner was a pail with something 
white and sticky in it. “I do believe that is paint,” 
said the rabbit. “Now if I can find a brush, I’ll paint 
the fence, because I heard my father say the other 
day that he would paint it when he got time.” 

This seemed like a very pleasant way to spend an 
afternoon, and Bunny Bob-tail ran around peeking 
into boxes and barrels until he found a brush. Then 
he began to paint the fence. 

“My father will be glad when he sees what a good 

115 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

piece of work I’ve done,” said Bunny to himself, and 
he painted all the harder. 

After he had worked for a long time, his supply 
of paint suddenly gave out. “Dear me!” exclaimed 
Bunny Bob-tail, “this is a shame! There is only half 
the fence finished and not a drop of paint left in the 
pail. What shall I do?” 

He looked all around the cellar but there was no 
more paint to be found. 

At suppertime Mr. Rabbit came into the yard. 
He stopped suddenly when he saw the fence. 

“Isn’t it good, Father?” asked Bunny Bob-tail. 
“If you’ll get me some more paint, I’ll have it all 
finished to-morrow. I thought I’d help you.” 

Mr. Rabbit saw the places in the fence that Bunny 
had not painted. Then he said, “I suppose if you 
had two pails of paint you’d have begun on the 
house, Bunny Bob-tail.” 

“Oh, I’d love to paint the house if I could reach 
up to the high places,” replied his son. 

116 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL DOES SOME PAINTING 

“I think little rabbits would do well to play ball 
and let painters take care of houses and fences,” said 
Mr. Rabbit. 

Then Bunny ran into the house to show his mother 
what a fine piece of work he had done. 


117 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL RUNS AWAY 


Very early one bright, sunshiny morning, before 
any one in the house was awake, Bunny Bob-tail did 
a very naughty thing. 

He ran away. Now he did not mean, of course, to 
go far away and stay forever, but he said to himself, 
“I’m a big rabbit and why should I always ask, 
‘Mother, may I go to play?’ or, ‘Mother, may I go 
down in the field?’ 

“I’m very well able to take care of myself, and so 
I’m just going to run out into the woods without ask¬ 
ing any one.” 

So Bunny Bob-tail hurried out of the house, after 
helping himself to some breakfast, and before you 
could count ten he was on his way to the woods. 

The little sunbeams danced in and out, and Bunny 
Bob-tail tried to catch them, but every one of them 

118 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL RUNS AWAY 

got away from him. I’m sure they must have known 
what a naughty bunny he was. 

By and by he found some wild strawberries. 
“These are delicious,” he said to himself. He found 
a great many, and he saved some for his lunch. 

“Oh, how wonderful it is to be in these beautiful 
woods all alone on such a fine day I” Bunny Bob-tail 
exclaimed. 

“I think I’ll come here again to-morrow, that is, if 
it doesn’t rain.” Then he walked on, listening to the 
birds singing and the crickets chirping. 

The afternoon passed and Bunny Bob-tail lay 
down in the shade of a blueberry bush. He was very 
tired. In fact he was so tired after his long journey 
that he fell sound asleep. 

Meanwhile Bunny’s mother and father had missed 
him. 

“Perhaps he’s over in Johnny Rabbit’s yard,” 
said his father. 

But no, he was not there. His mother called and 

119 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

called, but no Bunny Bob-tail answered. “I’m sure 
that something dreadful has happened to that 
bunny,” said Mrs. Rabbit. 

They searched for a long time. Nobody had even 
seen Bunny Bob-tail. Night came, and no little 
bunny came home for his supper. Mr. and Mrs. Rab¬ 
bit were more alarmed than before. 

Soon Mr. Rabbit and Johnny Rabbit’s father went 
out with lanterns into the woods. They walked for a 
long time, peering under each tree and bush. At last 
they spied Bunny Bob-tail, lying fast asleep under 
a blueberry bush. 

He did not even wake up when Mr. Rabbit picked 
him up and carried him home. Mrs. Rabbit was so 
glad to see her own little bunny safe and sound once 
more that she cried for joy. Then she tucked him 
in bed. 

The next morning Bunny Bob-tail woke up, and 
thought he had had a strange dream. Then his 
mother brought a nice hot breakfast to him and 

120 



At last they spied Bunny Bob-tail, lying fast asleep under a 

BLUEBERRY BUSH. 


























































































BUNNY BOB-TAIL RUNS AWAY 

kissed him many times. “Promise me you will never 
run away again, Bunny Bob-tail,” she said. 

“Oh, then I really did run away?” asked the 
bunny. “I thought it was a dream, but I like home 
best, anyhow.” 




123 


A VISIT TO GRANDMA’S 


One afternoon Bunny Bob-tail’s mother asked him 
to go to his grandmother’s house on an errand. “You 
may stay until six o’clock,” said Mrs. Rabbit, “and 
then Grandma will come home with you.” 

Grandma Rabbit lived just over the hill, in a cozy 
little gray house. In back of the house was a barn, 
and what fun Bunny Bob-tail used to have playing 
there! 

When he reached Grandma Rabbit’s house, he was 
rather hungry, and there in the cupboard was a crock 
full of delicious molasses cookies. Bunny Bob-tail 
ate three. 

Then he played in the barn for a long time. Up 
in the loft there was a pile of nice fragrant hay. 
“That looks like a good place to take a nap,” he said 
to himself, and he lay down. 

124 


A VISIT TO GRANDMA’S 

When little bunnies are very tired, they sleep 
almost as long a time as little boys. Bunny Bob-tail 
fell sound asleep and, of course, he could not hear his 
grandma when she called him. 

Mr. Jack Rabbit, the hired man, locked the barn 
door and went home to his supper. He did not even 
think of looking up in the loft, because he thought 
the bunny was playing down in the garden. 

Finally Bunny Bob-tail awoke. “Wherever am I?” 
he said aloud, for he had forgotten about the trip to 
Grandma’s. Then he looked all around and remem¬ 
bered that this was Grandma Rabbit’s barn. “Surely 
it must be time to go home,” he said, and down the 
steps he hurried. 

The barn door was closed and locked. “Grandma 
Rabbit!” he called as loudly as ever he could. 
“Where are you? Come and let me out, please!” 

Grandma Rabbit came running down the walk, 
three steps at a time and unlocked the barn door. 
“Oh, my goodness, little Bunny Bob-tail,” she cried, 

125 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 


“in another minute I’d be on my way to your house! 
I thought you must have grown tired of waiting and 
had run home.” 

Bunny told Grandma Rabbit about the nice soft 
bed in the hay, and how he had fallen sound asleep. 

“It’s always wise to tell Grandma what you plan 
to do when you visit her,” she told him, “for what 
a scared little bunny you’d have been, if I hadn’t 
been here to get you out!” 


126 


THE STORY OF A SAND PILE 


“Bunny Bob-tail,” said Johnny Rabbit one fine 
day, “I know where there is a dandy big pile of sand. 
It’s so big that it looks like a big hill. I think it 
would be great fun to play in it. What do you say?” 

“Where is it?” asked Bunny anxiously, always 
glad to hear of something which might mean a new 
adventure. 

“Well, it’s over in Mr. Smith’s yard,” replied 
Johnny Rabbit. “I saw the men putting it there 
to-day when I went over to Mr. Smith’s for some 
milk. I said the minute I saw it that it would be a 
grand place for us to play. Mr. and Mrs. Smith have 
gone away for a few days and we ought to go over 
there and have some fun.” 

Over to Mr. Smith’s yard ran the two bunnies, and 
soon they were having a good time in the nice, clean 

127 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

sand. Of course it was a naughty thing for two little 
bunnies to do, because they had no right to be in the 
sand pile. 

They made believe they were at the beach and 
spread out the sand so that they could build some 
houses. 

“This is a wonderful discovery you made,” cried 
Bunny Bob-tail in glee. 

“I haven’t had so much fun for a long time,” 
said Johnny Rabbit. 

Then Bunny Bob-tail had an idea. “Will you let 
me bury you ’way down deep in the sand pile, Johnny 
Rabbit?” he asked. 

“Yes, if you’ll be sure to dig me out again,” 
answered Johnny, always willing to do as his friend 
wished him to do. 

Bunny Bob-tail dug away a great deal of sand, and 
then said, “Now Johnny Rabbit, make believe that 
you are Little Boy Blue asleep in the haystack. Of 
course you needn’t really fall asleep. Then after a 

128 


THE STORY OF A SAND PILE 

little while I’ll dig you out and you can bury me.” 

This sounded like a very nice game to Johnny 
Rabbit, and so he lay down in the sand. “Close your 
eyes, so the sand won’t get in them,” warned Bunny 
Bob-tail as he began to cover up his little chum. 

The bunny worked for a long time covering up 
Johnny Rabbit. Then he ran over to the pump to 
get a drink of nice, cool water. When he got back, he 
thought it was time to dig out Johnny Rabbit, and so 
he started to throw the sand off. 

But the more he dug the farther he seemed from 
getting at the place where Johnny was buried. 
Bunny grew very much alarmed. Soon he saw a man 
passing by, and he ran to ask him if he would please 
come and help him, as there was a little bunny buried 
far down in the bottom of the big pile of sand. 

The man started to dig at once, and before long 
he found the little rabbit, half scared to death. “Oh, 
Bunny Bob-tail,” cried Johnny, “I thought you would 
never find me! I was never so scared in all my life.” 

129 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

Poor Bunny Bob-tail was just as much scared, and 
he could hardly say a single word. The man who 
had dug out the bunny said, “In the future I think 
it would be just as well for little bunnies to keep 
away from other people’s yards, and sand piles, too.” 
Then he walked away without saying another word. 

Johnny Rabbit and Bunny Bob-tail went home 
slowly and quietly, and their mothers thought they 
must be tired out from playing so hard, because both 
those bunnies went to bed at six o’clock that night. 


130 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL DISOBEYS 

t 

“Go find the market basket, for I want you to buy 
some things for me at the store, Bunny Bob-tail,” 
said his mother, early one morning. 

“Very well, Mother,” replied Bunny Bob-tail. He 
was always glad to go to market, for he usually saw 
many interesting things on the way. 

“Shall I go across the fields?” he asked. He liked 
that way much better than straight down the road. 

“No, I want you to hurry, because the meat must 
be roasted for dinner,” replied Mrs. Rabbit. “The 
road is the shorter way, so you may go and come back 
that way.” 

Then Mrs. Rabbit gave Bunny Bob-tail a purse 
and a list of things which she wished him to buy. He 
carried the market basket and ran out on to the road. 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

Just out in front of his house he saw the most beauti¬ 
ful butterfly he had ever seen. 

It was yellow, with little black speckles. Now 
Bunny Bob-tail never caught butterflies, but he loved 
to run races with them. “I wonder if you’re going to 
the store, too,” said Bunny Bob-tail to the speckled 
yellow butterfly. 

But little Miss Butterfly flew across the road and 
into the field. Bunny Bob-tail looked around to see 
if his mother were watching. She was not in sight. 

a Now I must run a race with that yellow butter¬ 
fly,” said the naughty rabbit. “And anyhow, I can 
hurry across the field and get there just as soon. It 
does seem to me that my mother always asks me to do 
just what I don’t want to do.” Then he hurried 
across to the field. 

The yellow butterfly was nowhere to be seen. 
“Where have you gone, pretty butterfly?” asked 
Bunny Bob-tail. 

Soon he saw her. She was swinging to and fro on 

132 


BUNNY BOB-TAIL DISOBEYS 

a daisy. Just as Bunny Bob-tail came up to the daisy, 
Miss Butterfly flew away. I’m sure she must have 
known that Bunny Bob-tail had disobeyed his 
mother. 

The butterfly flew on and on, and Bunny Bob-tail 
ran after her. Once they came to a very muddy place 
in the field. “Dear me,” cried the bunny, “I’m stuck 
in the mud.” 

Then he had to struggle to get out. When he had 
finally reached a dry place, he could not find his 
mother’s purse. 

“I can’t buy meat and things without money,” he 
said, and home he ran, crying. 

When Mrs. Rabbit heard her son’s story she said, 
“It all comes of your being a disobedient rabbit, 
Bunny Bob-tail. I told you distinctly not to go by way 
of the field.” 

“I saw a butterfly and I was only running a race 
with it,” sobbed Bunny Bob-tail. 

Then Mrs. Rabbit and Bunny Bob-tail went across 

133 


THE ADVENTURES OF BUNNY BOB-TAIL 

the field hunting for the lost purse. At last Mrs. 
Rabbit found it in the mud where Bunny Bob-tail 
had got stuck. 

She went to the market herself, after sending 
Bunny to bed. It was a dreadful thing to' have to stay 
in bed on such a fine afternoon. About two o’clock 
Bunny Bob-tail heard his friend, Johnny Rabbit, 
come into the yard. 

“Can Bunny Bob-tail come over to my birthday 
party at four o’clock?” asked Johnny. 

“I’m afraid not,” replied Mrs. Rabbit. “You see 
Bunny Bob-tail didn’t mind very well to-day, so I’ve 
sent him to bed.” 

Poor Bunny Bob-tail! He had a long time to think 
about things. 

“It is very wrong to disobey,” he said to himself 
that night. “And to think that I couldn’t go to 
Johnny Rabbit’s party! Oh, dear!” And he made jp 
his mind to try hard to be an obedient bunny in the 
future. 


134 




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